Broker pitches for pensions

For several years Richard Barrett has been a member of Wachovia Securities' Platinum Circle, a group of 150 reps who are among the company's top earners. Photo: Andreas Larsson

As one of the top stockbrokers at Wachovia Securities LLC, Richard Barrett has made his living schmoozing with both blue-collar workers and blue-blooded businessmen.

Mr. Barrett, 60, generates about half of his commissions from wealthy individual investors. The balance comes from a very different niche business: managing investments for police and firefighter pension funds.

For more than 30 years, Barrett has built his client list through a combination of referrals and contacts made by giving speeches at various professional and civic organizations.

Mr. Barrett, who works in Hinsdale, makes regular appearances at the quarterly meetings of the city boards throughout Illinois that manage pension funds for their firefighters and police officers. The seven-member managing boards include active and retired police officers and firefighters, plus a few private citizens.

The business he generates from pitching his services to these pension boards has helped him become one of the top commission producers among more than 10,500 representatives for Richmond, Va.-based Wachovia Securities.

Mr. Barrett, who pulls in more than $1.5 million in commissions a year, has been a member for several years of Wachovia's Platinum Circle, a group of 150 reps who are among the company's top earners.

Although Barrett continues to network through civic organizations, more than 90% of his new accounts now come from referrals from existing clients.

"It gives us more than enough latitude to get through the next 20 years," Mr. Barrett says.

Mr. Barrett has just the right personality for relating to both working-class and well-heeled clients. He's disarmingly affable and self-deprecating. And he's not shy about closing a deal.

"You have to ask for the order," Mr. Barrett says. "Nobody is going to do anything unless you say, 'What do I need to do to move forward with this?' "

Those who know Mr. Barrett say he is well aware of his assets but also knows his limitations. "He knows his strengths and he plays to them," says fellow Wachovia adviser John Stevenson Sr., who has known Mr. Barrett for more than 20 years.

For example, Mr. Barrett often sends out his 29-year-old son, Jesse, also a financial adviser in the Hinsdale office, to go after business from the younger pension fund managers. Mr. Barrett recognizes they may feel more comfortable talking to someone closer to their own age.

"They're often reluctant to ask me a dumb question, but they're more than happy to do it with Jess," he says.

His son's expertise in developing complex financial plans is also the perfect compliment to his own ability to build rapport within the communities they serve, Mr. Barrett says.